Science

Scientists at Carnegie Mellon University's Morphing Matter Lab have created printed paper actuators. By coating paper with conductive thermoplastic, the paper can bend, fold or flatten in response to an electric current. The video demonstrates some interesting uses for this technology, as interface controllers and as a moving publishing medium. (H/T to Mikael for sharing this.)

Researchers at MIT have figured out how to break the water air barrier for wireless communication. The solution involves using a sonar transmitter to vibrate the surface of the water and an airborne receiver to detect and decode the vibrations. The system produced data rates at hundreds of bits per second in tests done in two MIT swimming pools.

Researchers have used machine learning and AI to identify a brain signal model that characterises Fibromyalgia, despite the some doctors believing that Fibromyalgia does not exist. The signature model can be used for assessing therapeutic mechanisms and predicting treatment response at an individual patient level.

Reseachers at UCLA have developed an all optical neural network system, which uses specially etched plates to diffract incoming light to perform calculations. A number of plates are layered together to create teh Diffractive Deep Neural Network (D2NN) which can perform calculations at the speed of light.

40,000 year old worms found frozen in samples taken from the permafrost in Siberia have been revived. The worms were warmed gradually in a Petri dish full of enrichment culture and E. coli food for a few weeks. They are the first multi-cellular organisms to survive such a long cryobiosis.

A parasite found on cats may make you more entrepreneurial. Researchers at the University of Colorado Boulder found that students infected with Toxoplasma Gondii were 1.4 times more likely to major in business and 1.7 times more likely to to pursue a management and entreprenurial pathway. It is thought that the parasite encourages risk taking behaviour in the host in an attempt to increase the chances of it spreading to other cats.

Founder of Mythical Ireland Anthony Murphy discovered a new henge close to the Newgrange henge site in Brú na Bóinne in County Meath. The discovery was made using a drone to survey the area during the prolonged hot weather which caused the cropmarks of the henge to become visible. The structure dates back to 3,000 BC.

Technology developed at CERN by New Zealand father and son scientists Professors Phil and Anthony butler called the Medipix3 has been used to produce the world's first 3D colour X-Ray. The Medipix is a chip used in the Large Hadron Collider for particle imaging and detection and has been refined by the scientists over the past 20 years. Their company MARS Bioimaging Ltd is now commercialising a 3D scanner using the technology.

The scorched earth and drought stricken land caused by the current heat wave is revealing the footprint of ancient settlements in land across Wales. Dr. Toby Driver, the Royal Commission's aerial investigator (bet that job title makes for an awesome business card!) is cataloging these ancient aerial clues. Many iron age and roman settlements have revealed themselves already.